| ArsLoqui |
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(Apologies if this is a double-post. I didn't see it go through the first time.)
Howdy! I didn't want to get into too much detail here in case one of my players happened to stumble on this thread, but that'd make it all but impossible to explain.
I've DM'd plenty of 2nd edition D&D and my day. Pathfinder is my first foray in the d20-verse, and for the sake of simplicity I decided to run the first part of the Rise of Runelords series to get a feel for the system. However, the thrust of the campaign is centered on the events in UK2 - The Sentinel and UK3 - The Gauntlet, two classic 1st edition modules from TSR's UK team.
I’ll ask the most important questions first. If you’re interested in the backstory, the segues, and the reworking of connective tissue to make all of this fit together, that’s all written out below.
1) I’d like to use the Medium experience track to keep the APL as low as possible throughout the campaign. Is it feasible for a party of five 3rd-level adventurers to make it all the way through Thistletop? (Not including Malfeshnekor, who I’ll probably leave out.) I would like them to have just hit level three when they encounter Nualia.
2) What’s the highest APL that Skinsaw Murders can handle without it being a cakewalk? I’d like stick an adventure between the end of Burnt Offerings and the beginning of Skinsaw Murders that will probably take the characters to fourth, possibly pushing fifth, level. Will that make things too easy?
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The basic backstory is this (names changed to reflect my campaign world, but borrowed wholesale from UK2-3):
In ages past, before the rise of the Sea Princes (these events occur on a very large island off the mainland), Foxleigh was an independent and populous state, ruled by a succession of Grand Dukes. For many years, the self-styled barons of the scorched and barren coastal lands to the south east, beyond the Pikes of Sca Fell (moutains!), had coveted the lush and fertile hills of the Dukes' peaceful state. War would have been the undoubted outcome were it not for the fact that the only route between the two lands was through the pass of Mickledore. This narrow canyon, cutting through the Sca Fell range, had been eroded by the Paddington River, and was defended by a lofty fortress which had been built by the Dukes as a guard against any surprise attack. Dominating the pass from its rocky spur, the Keep of Mickledore was so cunningly constructed that it exceeded all the Dukes' expectations, and no army could force a passage.
An uneasy peace prevailed for some while, and the Dukes turned their thoughts to other matters. Yet rare was the caracan that braved the pass without an armed escort, and the barons did not forget the cool breezes of Foxleigh.
Then, upon a time, there came amoung the barons a dark mage of tremendous power, and he offered to aid them in the pursuit of their ambitions. Vast was his price and long were his labors, but when he finished, the barons thought the deal a bargain, for he had fashioned a weapon which was more than capable of destroying the Keep. A gauntlet it was, made of hard, black leather, set with iron studs and rugged gems. It seemed large, but once donned, it would alter itself to fit any left hand. Into it ahd gone more than a portion of the mage's power, for it possessed the power of thought and was driven by a will of its own; a will dominated by the desire to destroy the Keep.
As soon as word of the Gauntlet reached the ears of the Duke in Foxleigh, all the mages of the land were summoned to his palace, and work began on a counter to this awesome threat. Althought there was but little time in which to accomplish this task, the final creation proved indeed to be a match for the evil of the Gauntlet. It was its very antithesis; soft, pale in color and fitting snugly on the right hand of any wearer, all its powers concentrated on defense.
Worn by a succession of mages calling themselves the Guardians, the glove was named the Sentinel. In it lay Foxleigh's hope and strength, and, should the opportunity arise, it had power enough to destroy the Gauntlet forever. As long as the Keep was guarded by the Sentinel, the Gauntlet dared not assail it, and thus the pass was made secure and a stalemate reached.
As time passed, the power of the Sea Princes waxed ever stronger, and soon the coastal lands fell to their hordes, yet still the Keep protected Foxleigh. As the Sea Princes marched on to victory, the Gauntlet was first hidden, then lost during the ensuing mayhem. The Sentinel, deprived of its enemy, fell into acquiescence. The last mage to take the title of Guardian (a long-deceased Foxglove) finally retired to his ocean-side villa, and took the Sentinel with him. There it remained until his descendants forgot its history and came to regard it as no more than a curio. As for the Keep, its sole purpose was no to hold the pass against the tribes of humanoids which inhabited the mountains.
Years passed. The Sentinel lay forgotten in the crumbling Foxglove estate. The Gauntlet, lost to human knowledge, gained strength and purpose, and waited...
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I’ve nixed the Runelord backdrop, replacing the long-lost Thassilonian Empire with the bickering states of Foxleigh (creators of the Sentinel) and Berghof (creators of the Gauntlet.) I started the party off with Burnt Offerings, which I’m using to set up Beechmont (nee Sandpoint) as their home base. My characters will be meeting Shalelu, popping into the Glassworks and then gearing up for Thistletop this evening. I’m skipping the Catacombs of Wrath since it has no bearing on the plot and because I want to keep the APL down – I’ll get into this in a bit.
In broad strokes, here’s how I envision the rest of the campaign unfolding. One evening, en route to Thistletop, a blazing shooting-star illuminates the heavens, awing everyone for miles around before crashing down in the wilderness. The next morning, Shalfey, the chief sage residing at the Oracle of the Sun (a college and monastery housing a group of sages and the monks sworn to serve and protect them) opens the Books of Prophecy that he and the other sages use to give oracles, only to find the remaining pages blank! Only the last page still bears writing, and it instructs the reader to recover what fell to earth and take it to a mythical group of smiths, who will trade a new set of Books for the “fallen star.” Shalfey sends an embassy of monks to negotiate with the Druids in Beechmont, imploring them to seek out Derwith, a druid in the wilderness where the fireball landed. Shortly thereafter, another ambitious sage enacts a coup at the Oracle, killing many monks and forcing Shalfey to barricade himself within his chambers. Beseiged, he sends a telepathic message to one of his servants, begging him for help… and his nemesis sends out a demonic servant to retrieve the fallen star first, and to kill those who bear it if necessary. This NPC will stalk the party throughout, attacking when it is most advantageous.
Upon returning to Beechmont, having defeated Nualia and curbed the goblin threat (I think I’ll be leaving the Malfeshnekor bit out), Shalfey’s embassy will reach Beechmont and the coven’s head Druid will task the party Druid with tracking down Derwith. I expect that the rest of the party – asked by the local head priest (Father Tully Phipps) to divine the meaning of the omen and grasping the importance of the quest – will gladly complete the task. Derwith will graciously reveal the fallen star’s location for a price, and his calculations will send the party to ground zero – a derro lair, almost completely destroyed by the impact. The meteorite demolished the derro’s idol, and the devils now worship it as their new deity (the only thing powerful enough to topple their “god.”) Recovering the fallen star will require cleaning out the now-fanatical derro; at that point, the party can take the lump of mineral and metal to the Oracle of the Sun.
When they arrive, the boatman will confide in them that he is the servant to whom Shalfey pled for help. He suspects the second sage of villainy and will beg the party to aid his master. Adventurers will have to figure out how to penetrate the monastery, overcome its devoted defenders, and rescue the imprisoned Shalfey. Assuming they are successful, he will ask them to take the meteorite to the legendary smiths and bring back the new Books that will revive the stalled Oracle. Success in this last venture is met with handsome rewards from the grateful sages, not the least of which includes the omen that the shooting-star represents. The prophecy foretells the reappearance of the Sentinel and the Gauntlet.
In the meantime, Koruvus, leader of the Seven Tooth goblin tribe has disappeared. However, he has not accidentally wandered into the Catacombs of Wrath – instead, the hungry goblin happened across the Guantlet lying long-forgotten in a sheltered ravine. When he put it on, it crushed his mind and took absolute control of his body. (That night, the ominous shooting star blazed through the sky.) Gathering a force of gnolls, the Gauntlet attacked Mickledore Keep (now only sparsely manned as a redundant check on humanoid forces in the mountains) and captured it. When that happened, the Sentinel awoke beneath the dilapidated Foxglove Manor. Revived to its purpose again, it lured to it the only thing resembling a noble, heroic bearer it could find: Aldern Foxglove. Sadly, Aldern’s jaunt into the basement to retrieve the Sentinel gave him a bad case of ghoul fever. It is Vorel’s subsequently reawakened spirit that has compelled Aldern to assemble his legion of ghouls.
Not as ruthless or powerful as the Gauntlet, the Sentinel wrestles with Vorel’s dark influence and the evil and rapacious mind of the undying Aldern, hardly able to exert control. The humble Beechmonters become frightened as the Skinsaw Man and his undead minions terrorize the populace, mercilessly murdering townsfolk and scrawling strange messages in blood on the walls of homes – magical messages illegible to simple folk, but begging a worthy bearer to seek out the Sentinel and help it fulfill its destiny. After the party has cleansed Foxglove Manor and laid Aldern Foxglove to rest, the Sentinel will select the best bearer from the group and telepathically relay its story to them.
The Gauntlet, still possessing and utterly controlling Koruvus and his band of gnoll followers, plots its next evil move from behind the walls of the near-impregnable walls of Mickeldore Keep. Knowing the goblin to be far too unworthy a vessel for the Gauntlet’s plans, the malign artifact orchestrates the kidnapping of the daughter of a notorious Fire Giant warlord while the giantess is out hunting. Sending an emissary to the bandit leader to discuss ransom, the Gauntlet secretly knows the titan will never accept blackmail and will instead move with all haste to destroy the perpetrator or such an outrage – at which point the Gauntlet will lure him close enough to transfer itself to its might new host! After that point, the Gauntlet plans to turn its efforts to wholesale slaughter and conquest; all the while, its ancient nemesis, the Sentinel, has secretly begun working to forestall such a fate.
The Sentinel will encourage the party to proceed with all haste to the Keep in order to stop its foe before too much damage is done. Once the party arrives at the fortress, the Sentinel will tell them that a frontal assault would be suicide, and that the better approach is to enter the bowels of the keep through a series of forgotten chambers delved into the undercroft below the battlements. Sealed when the last bearer of the Sentinel left Mickledore, the long-closed gates will open once again to the bearer of the glove. A trio of magical guardians, an intruding army of giant ants, and a frescoed and muralled room full of clever secret doors stand between the adventurers and the castle. Once these obstacles are passed, the group finds that the gnoll bandits, flush with new victory and bloodshed, have emptied the contents of the castle's brewhouse and wine cellar. Drunk to the point of incompetence, the adventurers should have no trouble making their way through the building if they exercise caution and discretion; otherwise, there will much combat with drunken gnolls. The party will find the Gauntlet and Koruvus in the Great Tower, but before battle can be joined, the surprised enemy, sensing the presence of its nemesis, fearfully smashes a black gem in his fist and disappears from sight!
While the stunned party contemplates this turn of events, the incredible happens. Bloodfire's mustered army--consisting of hobgoblins, hell hounds, manticores, and screaming devilkin – launches a massive assault on the fortress. The gnolls, suddenly bereft of the mysterious influence of the Gauntlet, make a chaotic break for escape out the main gate and are slaughtered mercilessly as the army comes up the road, over the mountains, and across the ravine! Suddenly, the party finds itself in the bizarre position of defending the castle they have just succeeded in infiltrating. After (hopefully) repelling the first wave of attackers, Bloodfire calls a cease-fire and demands a parley, at which he will demand his daughter be turned over to him within the space of 24 hours or he will raze the fortress and kill everyone within its walls. At this point, the party must figure out what has become of Koruvus and the giantess--and then how to operate the magical dungeon of Mickledore Keep. With the aid of clues in the castle library and castellan's quarters (and possibly with the help of a few prisoners from the castle's garrison), the party should be able to release the giantess and defuse the battle situation--Bloodfire will honor his word and retreat. Then, the stage is set for releasing and confronting Koruvus and the Gauntlet. One surprise remains, however, as the Gauntlet has managed to switch hosts within the prison and emerges on the hand of a giant, two-headed troll! Game on, suckers! If the troll is defeated, the Sentinel will touch the Gauntlet and both artifacts will be destroyed, leaving behind a magic ring and several magic gems, the only remaining constituent elements of the ill-fated pair. If the troll wins, well, I suppose darkness encompasses the land...
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I haven’t actually read the Skinsaw Murders yet, but it looks like I can drop the whole Magnimar conspiracy element without seriously affecting Part One of the adventure. Yes? I also don’t have any idea what level the party will be coming out of Part One of Skinsaw Murders, so it might be necessary for the Gauntlet to have transferred already from Koruvus to something more powerful, and to throw stronger minions in Mickledore. I’m trying to keeping the APL as low as possible to avoid this.
Wow, that was a lot! What do you think of all of this?